Four-time All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins has a new NBA home.

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The 30-year-old who was named All-NBA on two occasions during his physical prime has endured multiple setbacks since January 2018, when he went down to a torn left Achilles. Cousins then joined the Golden State Warriors the subsequent summer, but he suffered a torn left quadriceps early in his first postseason with that organization. His return to the rotation couldn’t prevent Golden State from falling to the Toronto Raptors in the NBA Finals.

Cousins signed with the Los Angeles Lakers in July 2019, but his tenure with that club ended before it started when he tore his ACL in August. Los Angeles waived Cousins this past February, and he did not take part in the summer NBA resumption held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Cousins joins an unsettled situation in Houston, as it’s rumored that superstar guards Russell Westbrook and James Harden could push to be traded before the upcoming season begins on Dec. 22.

WHO IS DEMARCUS COUSINS

DeMarcus Amir Cousins is an American professional basketball player . Nicknamed “Boogie”, he played college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats, where he was an All-American in 2010. He left Kentucky after one season, and was selected with the fifth overall pick in the 2010 NBA draft by the Sacramento Kings. In his first season with the Kings, Cousins was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team, and from 2015 to 2018, he was named an NBA All-Star. He is also a two-time gold medal winner as a member of the United States national team, winning his first in 2014 at the FIBA Basketball World Cup and his second in 2016 at the Rio Olympics.

Cousins attended LeFlore Magnet High School. He was a first-team Parade All-American in 2009, and played in the 2009 McDonald’s All-American Boys Game, finishing with 14 points and 8 rebounds. Cousins also played in the 2009 Nike Hoop Summit at the Rose Garden in Portland and the Jordan Brand Classic at Madison Square Garden where he scored 10 points for the black team. Cousins led LeFlore to the Alabama class 6A Final Four against Hillcrest that beat Austin High School to progress to the state championship; falling short to future college teammate Eric Bledsoe and Parker High School.

2020 NBA ACQUISITIONS AND TRADES

Jayson Tatum agrees to 5-year, $195 million extension with Celtics

Knicks sign No. 8 overall pick Obi Toppin to rookie deal

The Knicks announced (via Twitter) that they inked their 2020 No. 8 lottery pick Obi Toppin to his rookie contract. The former Dayton forward will earn $4,862,040 in his rookie year and about $22.1M over the first four years of his NBA career, unless he accepts a deal worth less than the maximum allowable 120% of the rookie scale. A full list of anticipated rookie scale salary figures is viewable here.

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© Obi Toppin

The 6-9 Brooklyn native Toppin played two years for Dayton, averaging 20.0 PPG, 7.5 RPG and 2.2 APG across 31 games during his second season in 2019-20 (all starts).

Toppin marks the first draft pick of new Knicks team president Leon Rose and will join new head coach Tom Thibodeau‘s revamped New York roster for the 2020-21 season. This offseason, the Knicks appear to be mostly in asset-gathering mode, having made two deals to turn Ed Davis into three future first-round picks.

Melo re-signs with Blazers on reported 1-year deal

The Portland Trail Blazers will stay Melo.

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Anthony joined the Trail Blazers in Nov. 2019 after a year-long absence from the NBA, during which he admitted he seriously contemplated retirement. The 36-year-old impressed in his return to the league and went on to score 15.4 points per game in 58 starts as Portland’s third option on offense behind Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum.

The 10-time All-Star chose to return to the Blazers out of loyalty to the franchise, Charania reports.

After the Los Angeles Lakers eliminated Portland from the postseason in August, Anthony said he anticipated playing another year in 2020-21 and admitted he would like to stick around in Rip City.

“I pray that it can be Portland, I think I found a home in Portland,” he said in August. “I think you (media members) saw it, why this is a good fit for me.

“Whenever you find a situation that’s comfortable and allows you to be who you are, you want to stay in that situation. There’s no need to try different things when something is working.”

The 2020-21 season will be Anthony’s 18th in the NBA.

Biyombo, Hornets agree to new deal

The Charlotte Hornets agreed to a deal to bring back free-agent center Bismack Biyombo, sources told Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.

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Biyombo spent the last two seasons in Charlotte and averaged 7.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, 0.9 blocks, and 19.4 minutes per game in 2020.The 28-year-old made his NBA debut with Charlotte in the 2011-12 season when they were still the Bobcats.He signed a four-year, $70-million contract with the Orlando Magic in 2016 after spending one season with the Toronto Raptors. In 2018, the Magic dealt him to the Hornets in a three-team trade with the Chicago Bulls.Bismack Biyombo Sumba (born August 28, 1992) is a Congolese professional basketball player for the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected with the seventh overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft by the Sacramento Kings and subsequently traded to the Charlotte Bobcats (now Charlotte Hornets). Biyombo has also played for the Toronto Raptors and the Orlando Magic .